


The Movie's Winding Down (You've Got Your Happy Ending)

by AndyBoy



Series: In His Shoes Verse [2]
Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti)
Genre: Bisexual Mike Hanlon, Coming Out, ITS ABOUT THE YEARNING, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Trans Bill Denbrough, Unresolved Romantic Tension, its not really mentioned but thats whats being implied in case youre wondering, this is so tender...Hanbrough is so tender like. as a whole
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-18
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:14:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21844264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AndyBoy/pseuds/AndyBoy
Summary: As they found themselves on the dirt roads that lead to the outskirts of Derry, Bill began to hum. It wasn’t a song Mike recognized, but it was low and soft and sad, and it was instantly Mike’s new favorite song.(Mike Hanlon isn't scared of his feelings for Bill. Maybe for tonight, he can just exist with him, nothing more.)
Relationships: Bill Denbrough/Mike Hanlon, Richie Tozier/Stanley Uris (mentioned)
Series: In His Shoes Verse [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1568203
Comments: 2
Kudos: 46





	The Movie's Winding Down (You've Got Your Happy Ending)

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place directly after the end of In His Shoes, which is the first work in the series. If you don't want to read that for context, cause it's pretty long,
> 
> basically the things you need to know for context are: 
> 
> \- Stan and Richie both came out as gay earlier that day, and announced that they were dating.  
> \- Mike went on a date with a girl named Anna the previous day, and told her that he didn't like her because he liked someone else. When pressed further about it, he admitted to her that he liked Bill, and she was supportive.
> 
> this actually isn't the one-shot i mentioned in the end notes of In His Shoes, I wrote this thing in like about two hours because i got Soft About Hanbrough. there's still more to come in this series.
> 
> when i write i like to put trigger warnings in ROT13 in the endnotes, but the only trigger warning for this one-shot is the use of the Q term! so I didn't feel the need to put that in ROT13.

“I-it’s getting late. Do you w-want me to walk you h-home?”

Mike looked up at Bill, who was sitting on the opposite end of the couch, looking nervous. 

After the film was over, Stan and Richie had left quickly so they wouldn’t have to help with cleaning the kitchen. Eddie left halfway through the cleaning process, claiming to be too grossed out to continue. The other four had finished relatively quickly, and Ben and Bev had quickly cleared out. Bill had offered Mike a soda, and Mike had stayed behind in the living room with him, channel surfing. 

Mike shook his head. “Thanks for offering, Bill, but I should be fine.”

“M-maybe I should r-rephrase,” Bill said. “Will you  _ l-let me  _ walk you home?”

“You want to?” Mike raised an eyebrow.

Bill nodded. “I’d f-feel better.”

Mike grinned. “Okay, thank you. That’d be great.”

Bill looked relieved. “Okay. It’s a pretty l-long walk, do y-you want t-to ride with me on Silver?”

Mike shook his head. “Thanks, but I walked here this morning for a reason. It’s a really nice route through town, and the weather’s good too. I like to take my time and appreciate the world, when it’s being kind.”

“You’re so soft-hearted,” Bill said. “I-it’s really a-a-admirable.”

Mike grinned at the small flush on Bill’s cheeks. “Thank you, Bill. Shall we get going?”

“Yeah, okay,” Bill said.

Mike stood from the couch and offered a hand to Bill, who took it hesitantly and let Mike haul him to his feet.

“L-let me just g-g-grab my house key,” Bill said, not meeting Mike’s eyes. “I’m g-going to w-walk Silver so I can ride back a-after I drop you off.” 

Mike nodded. “That’s a good idea.”

They left the Denbrough house quietly. It wasn’t an awkward silence, or the kind of silence that drags. Mike found himself settling into the silence, into the comfort of knowing that neither of them had anything to say just then, and that neither of them would hold that against the other.

Bill was comfortable. Bill was the kind of person Mike could spend hours alone with, not saying a word, and never feel out of place or uncomfortable. Bill was stubborn and kind and thoughtful, and admittedly a bit pig-headed, but that was just part of his charm. Bill was the sort of person Mike counted himself honored just to know, let alone be friends with. 

In short, as Mike had said to Anna the previous day, Bill felt like home.

They made it two blocks before Bill spoke. “S-so...Stan and R-Richie.” 

Mike nodded. “Stan and Richie.”

“I th-think I kinda knew,” Bill admitted, looking straight ahead.

“I think we all sort of knew,” Mike said.

“It d-d-doesn’t bother-you?”

“No,” Mike said. “It doesn’t bother me. We’re Losers, aren’t we?”

“We are.”

They continued walking.

The daylight was just barely dusting itself with the beginnings of dusk, leaving the air warm and the sky gray. It was Mike’s favorite time of day, hands down. The world was just on the edge of going to sleep, but still alive enough and bright enough to harness a kind of subdued energy. It was calming, and it was beautiful.

“I l-love this t-time of day,” Bill said.

“I was just thinking the same thing. It’s nice.”

“It’s l-like...this is a r-really weird comparison, s-s-so bear with me.” Bill’s hands tightened on his handlebars. “This t-time of day i-is like when the movie’s winding d-down and you’ve got your h-happy ending, b-but the love interests haven’t k-kissed yet, so you know there’s j-just a little more of the m-movie to go. But you’re n-not worried, because the c-c-conflict’s been resolved, and everybody is s-safe, and it's just the last f-f-few loose ends that need to be wr-wr-wrapped up.”

“But the credits haven’t started rolling yet.” 

“N-not quite yet.”

“I can see why you’re a writer, Bill. The way your mind thinks about things is astonishing.”

Bill looked down at the sidewalk, visibly abashed. “It j-just feels natural to m-me.”

“I love it,” Mike said. “I’d never make the connections you make, but once you say them, they make perfect sense. You’re so eloquent, Bill.”

Bill smiled sheepishly. “Th-thank you, Mike.”

Something inside Mike swelled with pride at the look in Bill’s eyes. He had done that, flattered Bill like that, leaving him looking like he’d just received the best compliment of his life. 

Mike was sure he was looking at Bill as if he’d hung the moon, but in that moment, if someone told Mike that Bill was in fact the one who’d put the moon in the sky, he’d believe it.

As they found themselves on the dirt roads that lead to the outskirts of Derry, Bill began to hum. It wasn’t a song Mike recognized, but it was low and soft and sad, and it was instantly Mike’s new favorite song. 

He closed his eyes and let the soft music wind through his ears, filling his mind with thoughts of Bill, Bill, Bill!

He smiled. 

When Mike had told Anna that the reason he didn’t like her back was because there was someone else, a boy who felt like home, his mind had been bracing itself for defence and his heart had been pumping a mile a minute. 

And then Anna had seemed to re-center herself, and she smiled and said, ‘Oh, that’s wonderful, Mike. Tell me more about him.’

And Mike had told her, he had told her everything. And she rode on the back of his bike towards her house, and they sprawled out on her bed, Mike reading a book aloud so she could listen to something while she painted her nails.

And Anna hadn’t cared that Mike liked a boy who felt like home. Anna had smiled at him.

Mike watched Bill’s face, almost golden in the last fading rays of the dusk sun.

If Mike told Bill, would he smile too? Smile like Anna had smiled? Or smile in that way that only Bill could?

Bill stopped humming, having apparently reached the end of the song.

“Stan and Richie being together doesn’t bother  _ you, _ does it?” Mike asked.

“Wh-what?”

“I mean, I said it doesn’t bother me, but I was just wondering about you. You said you kinda knew, but I was wondering what you thought of it.”

Bill shook his head. “It d-d-doesn’t bother m-me. I’m happy for them.”

“Good. I’m happy for them too.”

“Good.”

“Good.”

There was a long silence as they walked, Mike feeling as if he was on autopilot, barely able to tear his eyes away from Bill.

“We’re h-h-here,” Bill said, stopping short.

Mike looked away from Bill’s face. Sure enough, only about ten yards down the road, there was the turnoff towards the farmhouse. “Right,” he said. “Do you want to come in?”

“N-no, thank you. I’m all g-good.”

“Okay,” Mike said, his voice quieter than he’d intended.

“Okay,” Bill said.

“Thanks for walking with me.”

“D-don’t mention it. It was n-nice.”

“It was. Nice, I mean. It was nice.”

“It w-was.”

“Yeah.”

Bill stared at the ground. Mike coughed. 

“I guess I should get going,” Mike said. 

“I g-guess so. I sh-should too.”

Neither of them made any motion to move.

“Bill?” Mike finally said.

Bill looked up from the ground, and met Mike’s eyes, and  _ god, _ those were  _ Bill’s eyes. _ His kind, tired eyes. His deep, worn eyes. “Yes, Mike?” he said calmly.

Mike smiled with a self-assurance he didn’t feel. “Richie and Stan aren’t the only queer ones in the group.”

Bill tensed up. “H-how do you m-m-mean?”

“I think boys are great,” Mike said. “Girls too. Guys and girls. Both of them. I don’t know if there’s a word for that, honestly, but—”

“Oh,” Bill breathed. “You m-meant y-yourself.”

“Yeah,” Mike said. “I was talking about myself. Who did you think I was talking about?”

“Nobody,” Bill said quickly.

“Nobody?”

“No, I m-m-mean…” Bill bounced awkwardly in place. “I mean…” Bill ran a shaking hand through his hair. “I mean—”

“Hey, it’s okay,” Mike said. “You don’t have to tell me.”

“O-okay,” Bill said.

“Okay,” Mike said.

Bill swung a leg over Silver. “Thank y-you for telling me. It d-doesn’t matter t-to me either way, y-you know that.”

“I do know that.”

“I’ll s-s-see you soon, Mike.”

“You too, Bill.”

Bill rode away quickly, not looking back. Mike watched him go.

Bill disappeared around a corner, and Mike sighed before turning and walking the last few yards down the road towards his house.

The lights were on, and through the front window, Mike could see his grandfather sitting on the couch, watching a football game.

Mike stepped up onto the stoop and reached for the door handle. 

“Wait!” a voice called. Mike turned, and saw Bill hurtling down the gravel driveway towards him at breakneck speed. Bill practically flung himself off of his bike, letting Silver ride the rest of the way out before dropping to its side in the gravel.

“Bill, be careful with Silver!” Mike said.

“Screw Silver,” Bill said breathily, joining Mike on the step.

“You don’t mean that,” Mike said.

Bill grinned. “N-no, I don’t. But y-you’re more important than th-that bike.”

Mike swallowed and smiled softly. “Thanks, Bill. What do you need?”

“I n-n-need to tell y-you…” Bill looked suddenly very nervous, twisting his hands together, not meeting Mike’s eyes. “I need to t-t-tell you th-that I  _ will  _ tell you s-someday.”

“You’ll tell me someday?”

“You s-s-said I didn’t have to tell you, uh, whatever i-it was I was going to t-t-tell you. A-a-and I’m not ready t-to tell you...to tell you  _ that _ . But M-Mike, I promise, I  _ will  _ tell you.”

“Okay, Bill,” Mike said. “Tell me when you’re ready.”

“I will.” 

And Bill reached out and took Mike’s hand in his own, delicately, as though he were afraid Mike might shatter in his grip, or pull away. Mike would do nothing of the sort, and squeezed Bill’s hand reassuringly. Bill nodded and squeezed back, keeping his eyes fixed on their joined hands.

Mike watched Bill pull away from his grip softly, keeping his eyes cast downward, and cross the driveway to pick up Silver. When Bill turned back to look at Mike, Mike smiled and raised his hand, the one that Bill had held.

Bill nodded and cracked a tiny smile of his own, before turning and walking his bike to the edge of the gravel driveway. He climbed on and kicked off from the ground, riding away in the back-lit gray dusk.

Mike lowered his hand and rubbed his left thumb across his right palm.

The night didn’t feel like the space at the end of the movie where everything is winding down, where the credits are maybe only two minutes from rolling. It didn’t feel like that anymore, anyway.

The night felt like a prologue.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! i love my boys
> 
> contact me on tumblr @Aguecheek
> 
> i take art commissions, dm me or send an ask for prices
> 
> or dm me to talk about the clown movies cause i have So Much To Say.


End file.
